Time out! You're telling me that Saved by the Bell, a show as banana-pants crazy as it is iconic, was re-imagined from another source? Originally, the show was called Good Morning, Miss Bliss, about a teacher in Indianapolis. Yes, it was as boring as it sounds. But Brandon Tartikoff, former NBC president, developed a new show, featuring several of the Bliss characters, including everyone's favorite blond troublemaker, Zack Morris. Time in!
Kids and teens alike flocked to their TVs every Saturday morning to see what zany hijinks Zack and the gang would get up to. Saved by the Bell dealt with real teen issues, like your first breakup, but also slightly less realistic topics, like what to do if you've accidentally exposed the entire school to subliminal messaging. Saved by the Bell was so successful, it spawned two made-for-TV movies and two spinoffs. At the time of its run, the Saved by the Bell actors were teen royalty. Even though the show has been off the air for over twenty-five years, audiences still wonder, "What's Zack Morris up to these days?" Let's find out.
Leah Remini
Saved by the Bell's "Malibu Sands" episodes are total fan favorites, thanks in large part to Leah Remini's portrayal of Stacey Carosi. Stacey is the gang's boss at the beach club and becomes a love interest of Zack's. She's Kelly's total opposite. Stacey is dominant, assertive, and only smiles at people who deserve it. Remini brought the perfect blend of sass and sweetness to the role.
This ability would go on to serve Remini well. The sitcom world adores her. Remini is perhaps best known for her portrayal as Kevin James' no-nonsense wife, Carrie Heffernan in King of Queens. She went on to join James in his sitcom Kevin Can Wait, which was canceled after two seasons.
Besides cracking up audiences, Remini is most known for speaking out against the Church of Scientology. She herself was a member throughout most of her childhood, and left in 2013. Since then, Remini has written a memoir about her experiences. She also produced a successful documentary series for A&E, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. The series, a critique on Scientology's controversial practices, has aired for three seasons.
Tori Spelling
Violet Anne Bickerstaff could have been a one-dimensional nerd defined by nothing more than her taped glasses and nasally voice. But Tori Spelling made the character a sunny, underdog heroine. Audiences rooted for Violet and Screech as Bayside High's dorky power couple. Violet does the impossible—made Screech slightly less annoying.
Of course, most fans know Tori Spelling as Donna Martin, the fun-loving California girl on Beverly Hills 90210. Spelling was on the show throughout its duration, 1990-2000. She even came back for the reboot in 2009, reminding fans why they love Donna. Spelling is known for her appearances on several reality shows, most with husband Dean McDermott. She is currently hosting the makeover show The Look: All Stars and is set to star in another, much-anticipated reboot, BH90210. The trailer was recently released.
Leanna Creel
It's a good thing Tori Scott has a thick skin. Fans did not take too kindly to the random appearance of this tough-talking biker chick in the show's final season. Saved by the Bell needed a female character to fill the void left by Tiffiani-Amber Theissen and Elizabeth Berkley, who did not renew their contracts for the show's remaining episodes. However, Tori's presence was jarring, inexplicable, and her episodes lacked the show's signature madcap magic.
Shortly after her time on Saved by the Bell, Leanna Creel started working behind the camera as a producer. She has since founded a production company, Creel Studios, with an emphasis on food and an "enlightened sense of luxury lifestyle". Creel married her life partner Rinat Greenberg on June 17, 2008, the day California legalized same-sex marriage.
Dennis Haskins
Hey, hey, hey, hey! What is going on here? This is the catchphrase of Richard Belding, Bayside's beleaguered principal. Belding is always one step behind the forever-scheming Zack Morris. The pair have a love-hate relationship, with Belding frequently the butt of Zack's many jokes.
Dennis Haskins continues to act, albeit in much smaller roles. His credits include How I Met Your Mother, in which he played Judge #2. In other words, Haskins hasn't quite been able to distance himself from Richard Belding. Not that it's a bad thing. Haskins spent another seven years playing the Big Bopper in the long-running if disappointing Saved by the Bell: The New Class. In 2015, Haskins performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon with several of his former cast members in a sketch parodying Saved by the Bell. The Bayside gang will always be friends forever.
Lark Voorhies
Bayside High's fashionista. Lisa Turtle would strut down the school hallway as if it was a catwalk in Milan. She's always up on the latest style, has the trendiest clothes, and her hair is always, always fierce. Fans loved her almost as much as Screech, who carried a torch for her for years. Lisa lets him down any way but gently—though... c'mon, a guy should take a hint—but later shows kind affection toward him.
What better next step for a fashion queen than a soap opera? Lark Voorhies joined the cast of The Bold and the Beautiful, playing—you guessed it—a fashion designer. She shortly left the show as it required her to perform sex scenes that were against her Jehovah's Witness beliefs. However, Voorhies returned to the series, only to depart again in 2004. She has not had many recent acting credits, though she cites a hectic schedule as the reason she didn't perform the Jimmy Fallon sketch with her former co-stars. Though she may be out of the public eye by-and-large, remember there's a lot more than you realize under this adorable exterior.
Dustin Diamond
It ain't easy being Screech. Screech was the loud-patterned, suspendered black sheep of the Saved by the Bell gang. Even though he has friends, Screech is the whipping boy of the group and is often treated like Zack's personal servant. Screech's loud, annoying personality prevented the viewers from having much sympathy for him.
Nobody hated Screech more than Dustin Diamond. He would go on to simultaneously try to distance himself from Screech as much as possible while trying to monetize Saved by the Bell as best he could. Besides Dennis Haskins, Diamond was the only original cast member to star in The New Class. Diamond also starred in his own sex tape, whose title is an icky wink to Saved by the Bell. Later, Diamond wrote a memoir called Behind the Bell, with outrageous claims against his castmates. He has since gone on to claim the book was written by a ghostwriter, and certain details are fabricated. While Diamond may be sorry for his actions, his co-stars may not be ready to forgive him. A recent reunion showed many cast members together, but Diamond was notably absent.
Elizabeth Berkley
I'm so excited, I'm so excited...I'm so...scared! Elizabeth Berkley has the honor of delivering one of TV's most quoted lines ever. This was from the infamous caffeine pills episode, which revolves around Berkeley's go-getter Jessie Spano. In addition to earning straight A's, Jessie is known for her feminism and activism, as well as her G-rated steamy relationship with A.C. Slater. The role of Jessie Spano was created specifically for Elizabeth Berkley.
After Saved by the Bell, Berkley was the first to majorly distance herself from her wholesome character. Berkley starred in Showgirls, a film as famous for its nudity as its poor reviews. It has since gone on to become a cult classic, but it didn't do much for Berkley's career. However, Berkley continued to get work, guest-starring on numerous TV shows, including C.S.I. Miami and The L Word.
Mario Lopez
Oink oink, baby. A.C. Slater may have been a chauvinistic pig to Jessie, but not to the rest of the school... or the viewers. Between his curly, 90s-perfect mullet and skin-tight tanks, Slater is Bayside High's resident studmuffin. He's a jack of all trades and Zack's biggest rival. Slater loves the ladies, especially his firecracker girlfriend Jessie.
Mario Lopez shares the same smooth dance moves as his character, and competed on Dancing with the Stars in 2006, coming in second place. From there, his career as an entertainment journalist has soared. Since 2008, he has hosted Extra, an entertainment news TV program. Recently, he co-hosted the Daytime Emmys with Sheryl Underwood. Hopefully he didn't call anyone "preppy".
Tiffani Thiessen
Some of Saved by the Bell's plotlines have been so bizarre, viewers question if the show could be qualified as science fiction. The character Kelly Kapowski definitely supports that argument. She's the most popular girl in school, but also the nicest? Anyone else smell an alien?
In all seriousness, Kelly was a great character. She's sweet and bubbly, a perfect contrast to her friends who have all been known to be irritating and/or downright mean. Young girls everywhere wished they could be Kelly when the grew up. Some may even want to be Tiffani Thiessen when they grow up. Since Saved by the Bell, her career has only picked up speed. She played bad girl Valerie Malone—the anti-Kelly—on Beverly Hills 90210. Thiessen continued to amass an impressive TV resumé, most notably for her work on White Collar. Currently, Thiessen stars on the Netflix sitcom Alexa & Katie. Three cheers for Tiffani Thiessen!
Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Did it just get a little cooler in here? Zack Morris must have walked in. Very few TV characters embodied "cool guy" quite like Zack. He was a blond, Californian Ferris Bueller, always scheming, always up to no good. If Saved by the Bell were on today, Zack's antics would cause an uproar—like that cardboard cutout of Kelly, anyone? Alas, Zack was well-meaning and harmless enough, and is most known for carrying around his gigantic phone.
Though he'll forever be known as Zack Morris, Mark-Paul Gosselaar did go on to have an illustrious TV career, and it shows no signs of slowing down. In addition to Saved by the Bell, Gosselaar would land starring roles on NYPD Blue and Franklin and Bash. After all, Zack Morris is a ten!